It Takes Time to Fall in Love
by yabookreader96
Summary: Jackie can't wait to meet her soulmate, but a dire mistake on her part leads her to mistakenly identify him as Michael, while Hyde watches his soulmate clock hit zero and immediately knows that it's Jackie. Years pass, Jackie with Michael, Hyde saying nothing as he knowingly watches from the side. Will this dynamic be permanent or will destiny bring the true soulmates together?
1. Already Forgotten

**Author's Note (1):** This piece was written for the 2017 Zenmasters Anthology annual project on tumblr.

 **Author's Note (2):** This story is considering the scene from "Class Picture" (4.20) in the gym where Jackie meets Donna to be also when Jackie meets Kelso and Hyde for the first time. The rest of the flashbacks from the episode do not have to be considered canon.

 **Author's Note (3):** As more of a side note, you will notice this story has been written in the third person point of view which is different from how I usually write in the first person point of view. Third person POV was a requirement for the Zenmasters Anthology project, but I still stand by my opinion regarding the misguided views of first person POV in the fanfiction community.

* * *

Erythema had blossomed angrily over the small patch of Jackie's skin located just above her radial pulse on her left wrist. Constant and impatient rubbing could do that to you, a ten-year old Jackie supposed. But who exactly could blame her? Today Jackie was going to meet her soulmate.

Jackie brushed her thumb over her radial pulse again, causing the blood to rush to the surface. The crimson red stood out boldly against the patchy red of Jackie's skin, and the blood quickly arranged into her soulmate clock. _00:00:00:00:01:48_ , the blood spelled across Jackie's skin. And then, just as soon as it appeared, it was gone again.

"Is it almost time?" Jackie's friend Leslie peered around her shoulder.

"Less than two minutes," Jackie said, her voice filled with eager anticipation.

Leslie Cannon had quickly become one of Jackie's only friends since she had moved to Point Place. Her dad had gotten some fancy political job that Jackie had no hope of understanding at her young age. All she had known was that she was going to have to move across the state and leave her best friends Ally and Kate behind. But Point Place had given her Leslie Cannon, a fellow aspiring cheerleader and unicorn enthusiast, just like Jackie.

Point Place had also given Jackie her first major crush. Tim Pope wasn't in Jackie's fifth grade class with Mrs. Andrews. He had Mr. Jacobs, but every day during recess she had watched him from afar, impatiently waiting for the day they would not only meet, but truly become soulmates.

And with Jackie's soulmate clock dropping to its last seconds, she was praying for Tim to really be her soulmate.

"Where's Tim?" Jackie spun in a circle as the crowd of fifth graders swarmed around her. Recess was over and everyone was headed back into the school building.

"Mr. Jacob's class is right behind ours, I think," Leslie said.

Jackie again swiped her thumb over her pulse. _00:00:00:00:00:29_.

There had to be a way to get to Tim. Jackie didn't want to test fate; she and Tim _had_ to be soulmates. Without giving it a second thought, Jackie dove to the right, passing through the entryway to the school's gymnasium. Now if she could just wait here until Tim passed, she would be looking at him when her clock hit all zeros.

Jackie pulled herself behind the giant wooden doors of the gym so that no one would catch her. But then to her immediate surprise she felt something pummel into her back.

"What are you doing in here?" Jackie turned away from the door to see an older girl with fiery red hair marching up to her.

"None of your business," Jackie said snottily, focusing her attention back on the door.

The older girl leaned down to pick up a dodgeball, which Jackie assumed was what had hit her. "The gym is reserved for sixth grade recess only," she told Jackie.

"Recess is over," Jackie shot back.

The red head's eyebrows jumped up her forehead. "Hyde, Kelso. Come check this out. A fifth grader in sixth grade recess."

Jackie turned her attention away from her again, glancing into the hallway. Instinctively she checked her wrist again. _00:00:00:00:00:03_.

"Listen up, little girl," the other girl said. "I'm Donna." She pointed at herself. "This is Hyde." She pointed to a boy with frizzy hair. "And this is Kelso." This boy wore a goofy smile and a shiny set of headgear.

Jackie was momentarily stunned. No, this couldn't be happening. Where was Tim? Anxiously, Jackie rubbed again at her pulse. The blood swelled up, revealing straight zeros on her soulmate clock.

Her head shot back up, the reflective metal of the boy's headgear causing Jackie's stomach to roil. This boy was her soulmate?

The girl was still speaking. "…so next year you can be in here, but for now, scram!"

Swallowing her disappointment, Jackie fought back her anger at this mess the only way she knew how. With her name. "Well, my name is Jackie Burkhart and I will go wherever I want."

Her soulmate laughed, shooting a smile in Jackie's direction that took her by surprise. What had Donna called him? Kelso?

Kelso was still smiling at her. Jackie supposed she should at least give him a shot at this whole soulmate thing. But she had other things to take care of first.

Jackie still had a very tall and annoying red-head towering over her. "Hey, Donna." She decided to take care of her once and for all. "We haven't met before. I guess because I'm richer than you."

Then, with one more parting glance in Kelso's direction, Jackie spun on her heel and marched back towards the door.

"Hey, Jackie." Donna called her by her name this time. Then the dodgeball once again flew into Jackie's back.

"Oww," Jackie yelped. "That hurt, you lumberjack!" She smoothed out her favorite red skirt.

"Welcome to public school!" the boy with the frizzy hair said with enough sarcasm to last her a lifetime.

Jackie smirked in his direction. She couldn't remember his name.


	2. Utter Denial

**Author's Note:** I forgot to add my disclaimer to the first chapter. Everything belongs to the owners of That '70s Show, The Carsey-Werner Company, LLC.

* * *

It really sucked that Donna and Forman were soulmates because it meant during recess that Hyde got stuck being Kelso's partner when they played dodgeball so that Donna and Forman could be each other's partners. And being stuck with Kelso automatically meant you would lose the game since Kelso was a wuss and was afraid to get hit in in the face, or more specifically, get his headgear hit.

But mostly it sucked because it meant that Hyde and Donna weren't soulmates.

Hyde had been friends with Donna for years, and his soulmate clock was still ticking.

Not that he believed in that stuff though.

It was just that, today, well, today was the last time he was ever going to have to think about it.

If Hyde were being honest, he never did think about his clock that much to begin with. When he met Donna and there were still years to pass before his clock hit the zero mark, well, he had stopped caring pretty much then and there. Yet there were still occasions when he would accidentally swipe across the skin over his radial pulse with just enough pressure to make the despotic numbers swim into view.

And one of those accidents had happened just now, when he had lifted his arm to wipe off the sweat beading across his forehead. It hadn't happened in a while, so when he brought his arm back down, the red on his wrist caught his attention. _00:00:00:00:01:23_. His breath caught in his throat.

"Wait a second guys." Forman held his arms out wide, his eyes bugging out of his head. Donna held the dodgeball in her hands, turning to Forman anxiously. "I didn't finish my math worksheet last night."

"So what, man?" Hyde shrugged.

"No, no, no," Forman said, his voice squeaking an octave higher. "If I don't hand it in before the end of the day, Mrs. Green will send home a note. To Red."

"Oh, man." Donna glanced at the clock on the wall above the gym doors. "You've got like two minutes. Run." She quickly put a hand to his shoulder, spinning Forman's twig figure in the direction of the door, then shoving him off.

Just watching that simple gesture, the amount of affection that radiated off of Donna's body when she rested her hand on Forman's shoulder made Hyde's stomach twist. It also made him remember his clock again.

He still didn't believe in this crap, but he checked the numbers anyway. _00:00:00:00:11_. How had that much time already passed?

"Whatever, man. This is lame." He complained the second Forman disappeared out of the door.

Donna said nothing as she joined him and Kelso on the bleachers. "It's not a big deal," she said. "Recess is pretty much over any – "

Donna was cut off by the abrupt sound of someone pushing through the doors of the gym. It was a girl, probably a year younger than the rest of them, cowering behind one of the heavy gymnasium doors.

"What the hell?" Donna whispered. She jumped up and marched over to the girl, nailing the dodgeball she had still been carrying right into the girl's back.

Wait.

No.

Not her.

 _00:00:00:00:05_.

Hyde shoved his hands underneath his sunglasses and rubbed his eyes vigorously. Nope. No freaking way. But before he knew it, Donna was summoning him and Kelso to join her in her interrogation of the short brunette now standing with crossed arms before Donna.

Unwillingly, Hyde shuffled behind Kelso to stand next to Donna who was still scolding the girl. "Listen up, little girl. I'm Donna." Then she turned. "This is Hyde." She gestured to him. "And this is Kelso."

The girl frantically rubbed at her wrist. Then she snapped her head up, her doe eyes landing on Kelso. Hyde didn't need to check his own clock. He knew what it would say. Hyde also knew that she must think it was Kelso, she was giving him heart eyes already, but she was the only girl in the room, _and Hyde knew it was her_.

Donna was still going off on the girl, but the girl was paying no attention to her. Instead, her gaze was still locked on Kelso, but Kelso was busy inspecting the hem of his shirt. Hyde took the opportunity to get a good look at the girl.

She wore a bright red skirt with weird red polka-dots all over it. Her neatly tucked-in white blouse had puffy sleeves, and to top it all off, her obnoxious pony-tail was accentuated with a matching red bow. Meanwhile, Hyde wore a pair of grass-stained jeans with a thrift shop plaid button down over a black t-shirt that had a bleach stain near the left shoulder.

Hyde could simply not imagine any kind of future for himself that involved this girl, who, if he had been listening correctly, had introduced herself to Donna as Jackie. But really what Hyde was feeling was a twinge of guilt. A girl like Jackie did not deserve to have a boy like Hyde as a soulmate. Bitterly, Hyde realized that this was probably why she hadn't even considered him, but looked straight at Kelso when her clock went off.

So screw guilt. Jackie was every bit as obnoxiously pampered and conceited as she looked. She deserved the egg-headed Kelso.

Jackie was stomping off now, and Donna pelted her one last time with the dodgeball. Hyde had to get in one quick dig. "Welcome to public school," he sneered. Jackie turned and her eyes sent daggers in his direction. They were nothing like the hearts her eyes were sending to Kelso. Good.

The dodgeball had bounced back over to them and had rolled to a stop in front of Hyde's foot. Tempting his sudden rage, he picked up the ball and hurled it across the gym, the ball smacking into the door that Jackie had first come through.

But whatever. It wasn't like he believed in soulmates anyway.


	3. Futile Attempt

**Author's Note:** To the anon named Cass who was wondering: each chapter has already been written and I am posting one chapter every Saturday as is the suggestion of the ZMA.

 **Author's Note:** Inspired by the episodes "Ski Cabin (1.13) and "The Pill" (1.17).

* * *

 _5 years later…_

They were stuck in the back of the line of the cafeteria. Again. Because Michael had forgotten his lunch money in his locker. Again.

Today though, Eric and Donna stood with them in the back of the line, because according to Donna, their 5th period teacher had let them out late for lunch.

"Well why didn't you just hold Kelso's place in line?" Donna asked Jackie as they got closer to the food.

Jackie sighed. "Because the last time I did that everyone in line around us complained and we were forced to the back of the line. So instead of being embarrassed by a teacher, now we just do it ourselves."

Donna nodded sympathetically, ending the conversation. Michael was busy trying, with absolutely no success, Jackie might add, to balance a quarter on top of his nose. So she let herself zone out, the raucous chatter of the cafeteria fading to background noise.

It wasn't until they were all the way in front of the food line that Jackie came back to reality.

"Awesome! They've got tater tots today," Jackie heard Eric say.

"Oh, no. I didn't bring enough money for tater tots," Donna said, disappointed.

Eric grabbed two off the counter. "Don't worry m'lady," he said, laying the chivalry on thick. "I'll buy them for you."

 _What a good soulmate_ , Jackie thought.

"Michael, will you buy me tater tots?" Jackie asked. She wanted Michael to be romantic for her too.

Michael whined. "But Jackie, I only have enough money to buy me tater tots, and there's not enough to share."

Jackie was floored. She could not believe how quickly he had shot her down. "I can't believe you," she said, tears welling in her eyes.

"Oh, come on, Jackie. They're just tater tots."

"No, Michael." Jackie shook her head. "No. If you can't take care of me now and buy me tater tots, how will you ever be smart enough to take care of me when we're older?"

Now it was Michael's turn to look shocked. Only he looked hurt too. Jackie knew her comment was harsh, but she just wanted Michael to be the best soulmate he could be.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, Michael," she taunted. "They're just tater tots, remember?"

"No, forget it," Michael said, handing his money to the lunch lady. Then he started walking off. "Me and my tater tots are going to eat in the gym. Don't follow me."

Jackie had never broken up with Michael before. The thought had never really crossed her mind. They were soulmates, and they had found each other. It didn't get any easier than that.

But then Michael had made out with Pam Macy. He had made out with her like a dirty dog behind the gym. And Jackie had broken up with him. _No, Michael. We're through._ The words that had slipped so easily out of her mouth less than twenty-four hours ago echoed through her mind as she sat in the dark of the back seat of Eric's Vista Cruiser as they made their way into the woods to her family's ski cabin.

But the reason it had been so easy for Jackie to break up with him was because she knew that they were soulmates, and no matter what, they would end up together in the end. This 'break-up' was her way of punishing Michael for what he did so that he wouldn't do it again.

Yet, a nagging idea kept tugging at the back of her mind. What if Michael was getting tired of Jackie? What if he decided to forget about this whole soulmate thing and just be with whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted?

Jackie needed to let go of these stupid thoughts. She was just being paranoid. So she began talking out loud. About Michael.

"Do you know what the best part of this whole trip is?" Jackie had thrown the question at the whole group, but since Hyde was sitting next to her in the back seat she turned to look at him. "That Michael is not here." She tossed her hands, cocooned in her favorite red mittens, in the air dismissively. "He'd just be sitting here telling me how cute I look in my fur trim coat. I know I look cute; I don't need him here for that."

Great. Now she just missed Michael even more.

Hyde let out a long sigh. Jackie waited eagerly for what he had to say about this, but instead he just changed the subject. He picked up the bag of cat litter from the box between their feet.

"Forman man, what's all this crap that Red gave you?"

"I don't know, he's obsessed with kitty litter. I think he might be going insane," Eric said.

And then, not a moment later, the car hit a patch of ice. Eric swerved the wheel to the left in attempt to keep the car on the road, which caused everything in the car to shift to the right. Jackie felt her small frame get slammed into the door, but at the same moment a hand reached behind to her right shoulder, dampening the hit that her body took.

When Jackie turned she saw Hyde. It was his arm that had covered her shoulder. His other arm was braced against the front seat which had prevented him from crashing into her. His eyes flashed with brief concern for her, which caused Jackie more confusion than her situation with Michael did. But she nodded assuredly. Hyde used the arm around her shoulder to help her sit up straight, and before she knew it he had scooted back to the other side of the bench seat to look out his own window.

"Far out," he said.

Jackie was so disoriented that it took her a moment to realize that the car was listing to the right. She peered out the window and saw that they were indeed no longer on the road, but instead stuck in a snow drift.

Jackie waited with Donna, Fez, and Hyde in the car as Eric did what he needed to do to get the car out of the snow. But after ten minutes with no success, she started to feel anxiety about being stuck on the side of the road seep into her body the same way that the chill was seeping into her through her layers of warm clothes.

"This is awful. We are all going to die," she whined. She knew she was exaggerating, but she couldn't help it. Like she couldn't help the next words that flew from her lips. "And I love Michael."

"Shut up," Hyde, Donna, and Fez shouted at Jackie in unison.

Jackie was momentarily stung. What made them think it was okay to treat her like this? After all, she was bringing them to _her family's_ ski cabin. Jackie bit her tongue, but a moment later felt the need to speak up.

"You guys better be nice to me." Jackie sat up straight and used the most confident voice she could muster. "I didn't need to invite you guys this weekend. And I most certainly could have cancelled the entire trip when Michael did…what he did." She stumbled for words.

The whole car was silent except for the muted sound of Eric's whimpers out in the cold.

"So excuse me for being a little upset that my freaking soulmate cheated on me." Jackie's voice was getting louder. She could tell she was getting worked up and if she didn't be careful she'd end up in tears.

Donna mumbled an apology and Fez nodded sincerely.

Hyde just averted his gaze.

"I just can't believe that Michael would break the sanctity that is soulmates." Jackie hugged a pillow to her chest.

She eyed Hyde from behind. He was leaning over the fire place, arranging logs to start a fire. If he'd heard her he was completely ignoring her.

"Would you do that?" Jackie probed.

Hyde was still ignoring her, but this time she saw his chest rise and fall with a sigh. So he was listening at least.

"Come on, Hyde," Jackie whined. "Please just tell me. Would you ever cheat on your soulmate?"

Just then a bright orange glow exploded into the fire place. Immediately Jackie felt the assuring warmth. The light the fire brought to the room made her feel better too.

Hyde rose to his feet. He refused to look at Jackie, and now she knew that he was purposefully avoiding her gaze. Infuriated, Jackie stuck out her leg right as he was about to pass, cutting into his shins. She shoved the pillow into the couch cushion and sat up straight.

"Answer me, Steven Hyde."

Immediately he side-stepped her leg. She dropped it. "Please?" she whispered.

"No, Jackie. I wouldn't," he said, his back to her as he made his way to the kitchen alcove to grab a beer. Then he plopped onto the armchair, once again turning his back to her.

That was what Jackie was hoping Hyde would say, yet somehow his answer made Jackie feel worse. The tears that she had been working so hard to keep from spilling were suddenly welling up in her eyes, causing everything in the room to blur into nothing more than an array of colors and shadows.

She still had enough resolve to hold back the sob that was caught in her throat. Instead, she did her best to keep the tears and sniffling to a minimum, to no avail. And although Hyde was still expertly ignoring her, soon enough she had grabbed Donna's and Eric's attention from the bedroom. Donna joined her on the couch, which made Jackie feel a little better, but yet she still craved something else.

It wasn't until Hyde had scooted in next to her that she realized that it was his reassurances she needed. She tossed her arms around his shoulders and finally that sob she had been holding back escaped through her lips.

Jackie didn't know what it was that made her need Hyde's support. She supposed it could have something to do with the way he had buffered her in their small accident in the car; the way he'd looked at her with such concern until he knew she was okay.

It was something that made her want Hyde to be on her side when it came to her relationship with Michael.

"Now, listen all right?" Hyde gently pulled her off of him, but not breaking their embrace. Jackie listened, riveted. "If it's any consolation…Pam Macy would give it up to anybody."

Immediately, Jackie felt her sobs deepen. Hyde probably had been trying to make her feel better; she knew he must be sick and tired of her sobbing, but Jackie was acutely aware that he might be right.

She tore away from him and rushed to the now empty bedroom, falling onto the bed and filling the pillow with her sobs. Did Michael cheat on her because she wouldn't have sex with him? Was he punishing her for not having sex with him just like she was punishing him now?

That left only one way for Jackie to save her relationship.

"Michael, I can't believe that you risked your life hitch-hiking so that you could come all the way out here to see me," Jackie gushed. She stroked her hand across his face.

"Yeah." Michael smiled.

In the privacy of the dark ski cabin's bedroom, Jackie mustered up the courage to say the next five words. "I want to make love," she whispered.

"Wait, really?" Jackie could barely make out his eyes widening in the dim moonlight.

"Yes." Jackie's voice emanated confidence.

"Sweet." Michael propped himself up, removing his hand from underneath her shirt and started working at the button of Jackie's jeans.

"No, not tonight Michael," Jackie carefully pulled his hand away from her pants. "Not with our friends right on the other side of that door," she said using that excuse rather than admitting that she wasn't entirely one hundred percent ready quite yet.

"Tease," Michael whined, but he let her remove his hand and didn't push any further.

"Soon," Jackie reassured him.

 _Or we might not make it._ The thought echoed loudly in her head.

For the first few days after Jackie's soulmate clock had went off, the blood continued to well up underneath her pulse every time she rubbed it. And she did. A lot. She still had trouble believing that her clock had finally run out of time, especially when so many people her age around her were still waiting. So she rubbed her wrist almost as excessively as she did while watching the final minutes, then seconds run out. It reminded her that this was real.

But then it was gone.

One day, the blood no longer blossomed right underneath her skin. And the numbers were just…gone.

Jackie had freaked out. She didn't want to tell her parents that she had met her soulmate. They'd ask questions. But she had casually brought it up at dinner one night, asking her parents what happened to the soulmate clock after a person met their soulmate.

"Why the sudden interest?" her father had responded to Jackie's question with a question. He had a habit of doing that and it drove her nuts.

Jackie shrugged.

"It disappears," Jackie's mother said dispassionately. A moment later though, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why? Is something wrong with your clock?"

One of the many mysteries of the clock was that it was only visible to its owner. They thought it had something to do with the quality of the blood that made up the clock. Something about emitting frequencies of light waves that were sensitive to only the owner's eyes.

"No," Jackie shook her head casually. She lifted her fork, shoving green beans in her mouth so as to avoid more scrutiny from her mother.

"Jackie, do you think you might have become over-infatuated with the idea of our soulmate clocks?"

That was her father again. God, she hated questions.

It took Jackie a while to figure it out, but her father was right. She had made her life revolve around that clock, even once it had hit zero. And then, once it was gone for good, she had dedicated her life to what the clock had given her: Michael Kelso.

It hadn't taken long for Jackie to confront Michael about their soulmate status. In fact, it had been the day after her clock disappeared. After school, while she was waiting in a single file line with her class for the buses to come, she had taken off when Mrs. Andrews's back was turned.

She had spotted Michael, who was still just Kelso at the time, just moments before making the split decision to run for it. It was his headgear. She could spot it a mile away.

When she reached him, he was doubled over laughing at something one of his friends had probably said. She recognized the red-headed girl named Donna laughing next to him and two other boys that she didn't recognize. One was skinny and tall with light brown hair. The other wore sunglasses and had frizzy hair.

She tapped Kelso on the shoulder and he turned to face her. He was still smiling. Recognition lit his features.

"Hey, you're Jackie right?" His smile was friendly.

"Uh-huh." She was nervous with his friends around. She tugged his sleeve and took a few steps back. He followed. "I guess I should know your name if we're soulmates."

There was a flash of confusion on his face, but just as quickly it was gone. It made Jackie wonder if she had seen anything at all. Michael's smile changed, widening into a full on grin.

"Yeah, I'm Michael Kelso," he said.

"Jackie Burkhart," she said in kind. She could feel her cheeks flush.

"So soulmates, huh?" Michael began rocking back and forth on his feet. "Maybe we should hang out sometime?"

"That would be super fun," came Jackie's immediate response.

And they had hung out. For a few years it was just as friends, but the kind of friends that knew they'd end up dating when they got older. Mostly they hung out at his house because Jackie didn't want to explain to her parents why she was friends with an older boy. Sometimes they hung out in Eric, who Jackie had discovered was the skinny boy's, basement. She had discovered that this was where he hung out with his friends the most. And although Jackie was glad that Michael wanted to share his friends with her, his friends were, well, far from friendly to her. Especially the frizzy haired boy who she'd come to know as Hyde. She assumed this was his last name, but she had yet to hear anyone call him anything otherwise.

Then came Jackie's eighth grade year, Michael's ninth grade year, which meant he and his friends had moved up to the high school. Jackie didn't mind not seeing Michael's friends in the halls of Point Place Elementary, but she missed him a lot. So much, in fact, that when the next year rolled around and Jackie joined Michael at the high school, she decided that it was maybe the time they start dating each other for real.

And the last year and a half had been wonderful. Until Michael cheated on Jackie with Pam Macy. Until Jackie decided that she needed to have sex with Michael to save their relationship. Until Jackie got pregnant.

"I just hope to God this boy ends up being your soulmate." Jackie's mother's voice was ice as she drove her daughter to the doctor's office for a legitimate pregnancy test. Michael was supposed to drive her, but he hadn't been able to stand on two feet since Jackie, or rather, _Eric_ had broken the news to him.

"He _is_ my soulmate," Jackie mumbled under her breath, afraid to look her mother in the eye.

Her mother spared her a quick glance in the rearview mirror. "What was that?"

Jackie took a deep breath. "Michael is my soulmate."

"Since when?" Jackie wasn't sure if it was possible for her mother's voice to get any icier.

Jackie turned her head to look out the window. She could see the office at the end of the road. "Since…a while," she admitted.

Her mother didn't dignify that with a response.

Jackie was too young to have an OB/GYN, so her mother took her to her OB/GYN. The test came back negative, much to Jackie's relief, but her mother showed no signs of joy.

Jackie couldn't wait to tell Michael. She had something else to tell him too.

He was at The Hub with Fez, Hyde and Eric. As soon as Donna took off with Eric, Jackie shared her news with a moping Michael, trying to keep her nervous energy at bay.

"Michael," she said. "I'm not pregnant."

Jackie watched him come to life. One second he was splayed face down on the table, the next he was standing tall, his lanky arms spread wide in victory as he shouted "Yes!" to the high heavens.

"So you feel tons better right?" Jackie prompted.

"Ohhh yeah!" Michael said, his arms still held high.

"Oh God that's so great." Jackie couldn't hold back her smile any longer. But that's because she knew that was she was about to do was for the right reasons this time. "Because you know what? I'm breaking up with you," Jackie said in one breath.

"What?" Michael's arms fell.

"What?" came his echo, also known as Hyde and Fez.

"Look, Michael. This whole experience has opened my eyes. And nothing will stand in the way of my dream of becoming a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader."

Then, without waiting to hear Michael's or his echo's response, Jackie sauntered out the door to The Hub, feeling immensely proud of herself.

This wasn't the end, Jackie knew. Michael was her soulmate and she was okay with that. But, ever since she was old enough to understand the concept of her soulmate clock, she had done nothing other than revolve her life around it, and now Michael. She had never seen anything wrong with that before. But now she realized that she had lost herself in the process.

Jackie didn't know what she really wanted in life. Other than Michael, of course.

But she had him. He was her soulmate.

So, whereas she had broken up with Michael those few weeks ago to teach him a lesson, this time her reasons were entirely different. She broke up with him so that she could discover what else life had to offer her, what else she could do.

Could she be a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader? Or a globe-trotting fashion designer? What about hosting her own talk show? Who knew what waited for Jackie?

But at least now she could try.


	4. Permanence

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Prom Night" (1.19).

 **Author's Note (2):** Since this site does not make it possible to PM a guest reviewer, I wanted to take the time here to thank those reviewers, especially redrosalie, for sharing their thoughts on my story. It means so much to me that you would take the time to both read and review something that I wrote, so thank you!

* * *

Hyde knew that going to prom was a bad idea. But going to prom with Jackie? That was beyond a bad idea.

He'd go to his grave saying that the only reason he agreed to take her was to get her to stop pestering him about it. There was no other reason. No other reason at all.

Well, except for the fact that Hyde liked to think he could be a decent guy, at least when it came to comparisons with Kelso. He hadn't felt all that bad for Jackie not getting to go to prom until Kelso opened his big mouth and announced he was going with Pam Macy.

Of all people.

So maybe it was more than just the fact that Hyde wanted Jackie to stop pestering him. Maybe he felt a little bad for her. But it didn't get any deeper than that. No, really. It didn't.

And even though he didn't like her, he agreed to rent a tux to match her dress. He even bought her the corsage she didn't ask for.

Hyde was disrupted from his thoughts by the sound of knocks at the front door. Jackie.

Quickly he rushed for the door; he didn't want Edna beating him to it. Fortunately, she was just sitting on the couch, cigarette in one hand, beer in the other, still wearing her greasy lunch lady uniform. Even from across the small house Hyde could smell that day's pepperoni pizza radiating off of her.

"They're all going to laugh at you," Edna grunted with unnecessary force.

Hyde spared a glance at the door. Of course the screen door was the only thing separating Jackie from his mother.

"Shut up, ma. You're making the night too damn special." Hyde's response was filled with just as much animosity.

Hyde pushed open the door to find Jackie waiting patiently on his porch. "Hey," he said casually, letting the door fall shut behind him. He looked her up and down. She looked nervous, but yet she also seemed totally at ease. "Wow, you look beautiful." The words slipped out of his mouth without him realizing it. He found he did not regret it.

Jackie's lips turned up into an amused smile. "Oh my God, so do you," she admitted. There was a pause. "Um, do you want me to go inside and meet your…" Jackie pointed to the house.

This surprised Hyde even more than when he called her beautiful. Narcissistic, vapid and vain Jackie was willing to go inside Hyde's dingy house and introduce herself to his mother, who she called "Gross Edna" just because he was her date to prom?

That didn't exactly fit the personality type that Hyde had come to associate with Jackie.

"No, no, no." Hyde headed for the porch steps. "Trust me, she's lovely." And again without thinking, he weaved his arm through Jackie's to lead her away. "Let's just go, all right?"

Immediately Jackie pulled away and Hyde felt stupid for putting his arm around her to begin with. It wasn't like this was some real date, after all. Jackie just wanted to go to prom and Hyde didn't have a date. Voilà. Jackie was his non-date to the junior prom.

But it turned out Jackie wasn't pulling away from him because of that. Instead she pointed to the small gold box he held. "Is that for me?"' she said softly.

Hyde had forgotten. "Oh yeah, here. I got this for ya." He handed her the box that held the corsage.

Jackie stared down at the box in her hands for what seemed to Hyde like an eternity. "Oh God, Steven this is beautiful."

Steven?

Jackie looked like she was going to say more so he waited. Sure enough she eventually looked up and began to speak again. "You know, this whole experience has taught me that I don't need Michael to go to the prom. I can go with anyone. Even you. Thanks."

And then she took a step forward, wrapped her delicate fingers around the back of his neck and pressed a hesitant kiss to his cheek.

Hyde didn't care enough, not anymore, to be insulted by this. He'd pretty much shoved all those feelings of hurt aside that day he met Jackie in the gym when she had taken instantly to Kelso. And with it he had shoved aside anything that would ever let him feel anything but annoyance towards her.

But he was confused now. Did Jackie still believe Kelso was her soulmate? And if she did, why was she even here with him? If this were like the last time she broke up with Kelso before their ski trip, she would have been bottled up in her room crying and feeling sorry for herself.

So why was she with _him_?

Hyde cleared his throat. "Okay, let's not do that."

Because if they did, if Jackie was over being Kelso's soulmate, this could end up being a very dangerous night for Hyde.

"Sorry," Jackie said. "Um, I have my Dad's Lincoln." Jackie waved the keys in the air. "Will you drive?"

"Yeah." Hyde took the keys. "He's got insurance, right? Wait, I don't care. Let's go."

Hyde didn't think twice this time. He put his arm around Jackie's.

When they reached her car, Hyde uncomfortably walked around the passenger side to open the door for Jackie. She said nothing, but he noticed her eyes widen slightly in surprise. A moment later a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Belatedly, Hyde realized that this was likely because Kelso didn't do that kind of thing for Jackie.

Tool.

Hyde closed the door behind Jackie and walked around to the driver's side. Once he was in and about the put the car in reverse, Jackie turned to look at him. "Thank you," she said softly, biting her lip.

"Sure," he mumbled, unable to find some witty retort.

Jackie was silent most of the ride, but she didn't seem uncomfortable. At one point, however, she opened the glove box and pulled out the boutonniere she had bought for him. She also mentioned Eric and Donna once briefly, and she made some speculations on how they would decorate the gym, which was apparently the most "horrific place to hold an event so integral to a teenager's high school career".

At this point Hyde was getting lost, unable to follow Jackie's popular girl mumbo-jumbo, so he just nodded his head in agreement.

Jackie must've been able to tell, because she gave Hyde a kind smile. "Oh, relax, tough guy. It's just a dance."

"Jackie, I'm fine," Hyde said, but suddenly his palms were sweating.

"Uh-huh." Jackie nodded her head disbelievingly.

They were at the school now. The parking lot was packed with everyone's parents' cars. There were even a few limos. Hyde found a place to park near the front, then swiftly exited and headed toward Jackie's side. She had already opened her door, however, and was getting out of the car.

"Oh," Hyde said, stopping short.

Jackie snapped her head up. "Oh," she echoed. Then her surprised look quickly turned to horror. "I…I didn't realize," she said awkwardly.

"Uh, well at least let me take care of this." Hyde quickly recovered, taking a step forward and taking the corsage box out of her hand. He opened the box and placed it on the hood of the Lincoln. Then he reached down for Jackie's left wrist.

He paused.

Jackie's left wrist, where her soulmate clock had once measured the time until she was to meet Hyde.

Hyde glanced up at Jackie's unknowing face. Her eyes were focused on his hand over hers and he forced himself to forget about it. He still chose not to believe in soulmates, but it was times like this when he wondered how different his life might be if he actually did believe.

He took the corsage and slid it over Jackie's arm before releasing her.

She sighed, bringing her right hand to gently touch the flowers. There was a white and a pink carnation tied together with a bunch of pink ribbons. Hyde hadn't really known what he was looking for when he went to pick it up, so he went with the first pink corsage he could find since Jackie had told him that was the color of her dress.

"It really is beautiful." She looked up, her eyes searching his.

"Okay, well." Hyde shrugged. "Ready to go?"

Jackie nodded. He held his arm out to her and she weaved hers through his. He led her through the front entrance where they collected their tickets then made their way to the dance floor – aka, the gym.

There were all kinds of streamers and spinning lights, and the live band was playing cheesy disco music. But when Hyde glanced over at Jackie, she was entranced. Her doe eyes had gone even wider than before, and he could see the sparkling lights reflected in her eyes. She turned her focus to him, and he could see just how happy she was to be here. With him.

"Can we dance?" she asked hopefully.

"Jackie," he whined.

"Oh, come on. Please," she crossed her lacy-gloved hands and pressed them against his chest. "Unless you want me to start crying again."

Hyde was breathless. What the hell was going on with him tonight? "Okay."

"Yay!" Jackie bounced, then grabbed his hand and tore off to the middle of the dance floor.

They passed right by Kelso and Pam, but Jackie didn't hesitate in her determination, Hyde realized, to get right under the disco ball they had attached to one of the pipes in the ceiling of the gym. Either Jackie didn't notice them or she was ignoring them, Hyde assumed it was the former, but he was more concerned with whether or not Kelso saw them. When he glanced back at the two of them – it was hard to miss Pam in her pastel yellow dress – Kelso was sucking her face, so he thought it was safe to assume he'd missed them too.

Abruptly Jackie turned around, and Hyde collided into her. He quickly recovered, taking a step back and then holding out his hand for Jackie. She took it eagerly and he placed his other hand hesitantly on the small of her back.

Jackie was a very good dancer, Hyde realized. He hadn't paid much attention to her when the gang had gone to the disco in Kenosha, but he faintly remembered that she was fairly skilled. But mostly, he was surprised now by how easily he was able to dance with her. He had only the little skills Mrs. Forman had shared with him, but he had no trouble leading tonight, and Jackie followed effortlessly.

After a few more disco songs, a slower song began playing, and Jackie relaxed into Hyde's arms. Her cheeks were flushed and a few strands of hair were beginning to slip out of her neatly arranged bun, but Hyde begrudgingly realized it only made her more beautiful. He justified this to himself as purely an aesthetic and emotionless observation, nothing else.

Suddenly, Jackie's eyes shifted to something behind Hyde, and he could see her gaze harden. Her smile faltered. He knew she had spotted Kelso. Before Hyde could say anything though, she had shifted her eyes back to Hyde. He felt a bit smug when he saw them relax again.

"Steven, have you met your soulmate yet?" Jackie asked, her voice serious.

Hyde wasn't exactly sure where she was going with this, but he was interested in seeing where this conversation could get him.

"Yes." He made the conscious decision to tell the truth.

Jackie blinked in surprise. "Oh," she paused. "Why aren't you with her?"

Hyde chose his words carefully. "Because she's with someone else."

Jackie's face fell. Hyde's lips twitched at the irony. "I'm so sorry, Steven."

"Yeah, well."

Jackie fell silent. Hyde shifted his gaze so his eyes fell just over the top of Jackie's head. He focused his attention on the music. The lead singer had switched from guitar to piano for this song, and it honestly sounded like he kept hitting the same three keys all while wailing about some lost love found again. It was beginning to annoy the crap out of Hyde, but he kept dancing silently.

"Well, I just…" Jackie started. Hyde looked back down at her, waiting for her to finish. When she noticed though, she averted her eyes. "I just really hope that," Jackie shrugged noncommittally, "that she realizes she made a mistake. Because you're a good guy, Steven." She was using the same voice she had when back at his house.

"Me too."

Where the hell did _that_ come from?

Hyde decided he was only behaving this way because the gym was packed, and combined with the blaring lights intricately placed all over, it was just overwhelmingly hot in there. He felt a compulsive need to tug at his collar.

Once the song was over Hyde took a step back. "Let's take a break," he said, leaving no room for suggestion.

"Okay." Jackie nodded. "Ooh, let's go get our picture taken. We haven't done that yet." She grabbed him by the elbow and begun weaving through the crowd to the photo booth on the other end of the gym.

Hyde didn't have time to protest because arriving at the line for the photo booth at the same time as him and Jackie was Fez.

"Hey, man." Hyde swallowed nervously. He hadn't told anyone that he was taking Jackie tonight, and up until this point he'd been lucky enough to avoid garnering too much attention, even from Kelso. How would Fez react now?

"Hyde, I am having lady troubles," Fez said glumly. "Ms. Kaminsky, I mean Diane, is avoiding me." Then he noticed Jackie. Hyde held his breath. "Jackie, tell me. Am I not a catch?"

"Not now, Fez." She began tugging Hyde's arm. "Come on, Hyde. Picture time."

She pretty much had to drag him under the canopy that had been decorated with fake flowers in front of the camera. Something told Hyde that this picture was not a good idea. Taking Jackie to prom was supposed to be this one-time thing that would be completely forgotten by tomorrow. This picture would make it permanent.

A photographer with wide-rimmed glasses and greasy hair gestured for them to scoot closer together. Jackie reached an arm behind Hyde, smoothed out the front of his tux with the other, then focused on the camera. Hyde belatedly shifted closer to Jackie, but at that point the photographer had already clicked the shutter.

Hyde noticed Fez watching them blankly, his thoughts so far gone that he hadn't even realized that Hyde's prom date was Jackie. "Hey, Jackie," he murmured. "Fez is looking pretty blue so I'm going to take a picture with him, okay?"

Jackie looked over at Fez curiously. "Yeah, sure. I'll just go wait for our pictures to finish developing." Then she was rushing over to the camera.

Hyde quickly grabbed Fez, and together they held the classic finger gun pose for their picture. Then he wandered back over to Jackie who was staring intently down at two photographs.

"Here's your copy!" She handed it to him when she noticed his arrival. She was still so goddamn cheery.

Hyde took the picture. "My copy…" he said distantly. He held it up. In it, Jackie was beaming, her arm glued tight to him. Hyde on the other hand was leaning awkwardly into her side. He'd hadn't even had time to look up at the camera and smile.

But by the way Jackie was still staring at it, it might as well have been her pot of gold. Hyde wondered what Jackie was going to do with that picture. He thought for a brief moment that she might frame it and hang it in her room, but then he remembered that she still thought Kelso was her soulmate. She'd hang the picture if she'd taken it with Kelso, but this photo would probably end up buried in a drawer, or even the trash once she got back together with Kelso.

Which she did that night.

But Hyde still kept his copy.


	5. Somebody Great

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Kelso's Serenade" (2.21).

* * *

Jackie had no idea why her first instinct was to turn to Hyde. It just seemed like every time Michael broke her heart, there he was. And he always made her feel better.

If she really thought about it, she supposed it was because, although Hyde would never admit it, they understood each other. She had yet to forget when Hyde told her last year at the prom that his soulmate was with someone else. Michael was constantly 'with' someone else, and so Hyde understood. It wasn't like Jackie could turn to Donna; she had Eric and Jackie had not the smallest doubt that Eric would ever cheat on her.

So that left Hyde while Michael was off sleeping with Laurie and God-knows who else.

She supposed that was what brought her to this moment, this moment when she was leaning in towards Hyde, fluttering her eyes closed and bringing their lips together in a spur of the moment kiss. If Hyde's soulmate and Michael could be with and do whatever they wanted with whoever they wanted, why couldn't she and Hyde?

But Jackie didn't have any time to feel guilty or sadistically satisfied or whatever else she would have felt because the very second she brought her lips to his, he pulled his away. If it weren't for the residual tingling feeling across her lips she would've wondered if she'd even managed to kiss him.

"No, bad Jackie!" Hyde scolded, sliding across the seat of Jackie's car to get as far away from her as possible.

"But Hyde, I thought we agreed that you were alone and I was alone…" Jackie's voice was trembling, so much so that she had to stop speaking or she might burst into tears again.

"Jackie, I'm trying to help you out here, all right? So just listen to me." Hyde kept his voice calm and he was being earnestly sincere with her so she really tried to listen to him. "You gotta realize that you can do better than Kelso."

"But what if I never find anybody else?" Jackie said. After all, Michael was her soulmate, and if she couldn't be happy with him she wouldn't be able to find happiness with anybody else.

"No, you will man." His blue eyes searched hers, as though they were pleading with her, trying to get her to realize something, but Jackie had not the slightest clue what. "You'll find somebody great."

And then immediately it was like there was a switch. Hyde's demeanor shifted. No longer was his gaze reaching for her, but suddenly his eyes were closed off a million miles away, and oddly, it left Jackie feeling cold.

"See, I myself, don't like you." Even his words were clipped now. Jackie couldn't help but wonder if he had realized he was being too nice to her and took a quick step away. "I find you abrasive. But if I didn't know you and I had _never_ talked to you, I'd think you were totally hot," he said, shrugging.

Jackie wasn't sure how to feel about that. But she presumed that this was how Hyde tried to help people in his own strange, possibly rude and somewhat malicious way. So even if it kind of offended her, she knew he was just trying to help. Plus, he'd told her she was hot. "Thank you, Hyde."

He nodded, a childish grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Anything for you, doll."

Jackie didn't know why, but her for some reason, those words made her heart flutter.

And then Jackie drove. She had taken Hyde to Sizzler and then the mall to buy him new boots. She didn't realize how good it could feel to do something nice for someone else until tonight.

They drove most of the way back to the Forman's in silence. Jackie had no idea where Hyde's head was at, but she was too busy mulling over his words from before. _You'll find somebody great_. Something about that was tugging at the back of her mind. Jackie and Michael had made it no secret that they were each other's soulmates. So why would Hyde tell her she could do better than Michael, that she would find someone else, someone who was great? Wasn't that _supposed_ to be Michael? But Hyde had been so serious, and she had known he was trying to make her see and understand something, but she still didn't know what that was.

By the time she pulled into the Forman's driveway she was contemplating asking him. But she also worried that she didn't want to know what Hyde was trying to tell her.

Focusing back on the present, Jackie found Hyde standing outside of the passenger side door, peering in through the window at her.

"What?" Jackie asked. He had been looking at her expectantly and she realized he had probably said something.

"I said are you just going to sit there?" She could tell he was slightly annoyed to have to repeat himself.

"Um, I guess not," she said slowly. After another moment she pulled the key from the ignition. She had expected that their night was over after she brought him back to the Forman's so she was surprised Hyde still was okay with her sticking around.

"Do you know how to play chess?" Hyde asked as they walked to the door to the basement.

Jackie scoffed. "Not exactly."

Hyde held open the gate for her and shut it behind him. "Shoulda figured," he mumbled under his breath. "What about checkers?"

"Yeah, I know that one," Jackie said as she pushed open the door to the basement. "Hyde, why are you still being so nice to me?" she asked as she hung her coat on the rack right next to the door.

Jackie watched as he just shrugged and made his way over to the shelves beneath the stairs. He dug around for a minute, eventually pulling out the checker board and checker pieces. Then he went and sat in his chair, placing the game stuff on the wood table between his chair and the couch.

He looked up to find her still standing next to the door. "Do you want to play, or what?" She thought she saw him roll his eyes.

"Sure," she said hesitantly. She adjusted the hem of her shirt before walking over and sitting across from Hyde on the couch.

"You sure don't make it easy," Hyde said as he started setting up the board and pieces.

Jackie looked up at him, surprised. But he was smiling slightly, and he must've sensed that she was watching him because he looked up at her briefly before returning to the game pieces.

"Ladies first," he said, gesturing to the board with his hands.

Jackie reached across the arm of the couch and moved one of her pieces. She watched as Hyde did the same and then she began planning her strategy. But, before she could, she needed to say something.

"Hyde, will you be my friend?"

Hyde turned his attention from the board game to Jackie. "Sure," he said, then proceeded to make his move.

"Really, that's it? That's all you have to say?" Jackie crossed her arms, chagrinned.

"Oh, and I just took out one of your pieces." He smiled, obviously very pleased with himself.

"What?" Jackie looked at the board, mortified to find that three moves into the game Hyde was already winning.

"Look Jackie, I agreed to be your friend, okay?" Hyde said. "Can we just leave it at that?"

"Yeah, okay." Jackie was eager to agree, but only because it was her turn and she had just found a move to knock out one of Hyde's pieces too.

This time it was Hyde's turn to stare at the board in surprise.

"That's right," Jackie leaned back. "Read it and weep."

"Jackie that doesn't even make any sense." Hyde gave her a look.

Jackie started giggling. "So what? I'm winning."

Now Hyde gave her a look that told her he thought she was crazy. "Hardly."

The rest of the game went on that way, until Hyde ultimately won. Not willing to let him keep the victory, Jackie challenged him to a rematch and was able to come out the winner the second time around. By then it was getting late and Jackie didn't want to let Hyde get the upper-hand again so she thought it was time she get heading home.

"Yeah, let me just grab you that Coke first." Hyde rose and started heading for the stairs. After the first game, Hyde was going to go get sodas but Jackie wanted to start the rematch so he had put it off.

"Thank you," she called up after him but he was already up the stairs.

She draped her coat across his chair and picked up a magazine from the table and began flipping through it. Maybe she didn't have to leave just yet.

Then Michael burst in.

He was accompanied both by a guitar and Fez. Jackie then had the misfortune of having to watch both Michael _and_ Fez serenade her for her heart. Jackie was surprised to find herself unmoved, by not just Fez, but Michael too. If her newfound friendship with Hyde had taught her anything it was that sometimes it was just a friend that you needed because tonight Hyde had been the only one who had taken the time to help Jackie with what she needed, whereas Michael and Fez were more concerned with how to 'get' her, ignoring Jackie's need altogether.

"Hey, what's going on?"

Jackie spun around to find Hyde, two open Cokes in hand, reaching the bottom of the stairs. She eagerly took one from him. "Nothing. Nothing at all," she said cheerily but sent proverbial daggers through her eyes in the direction of Michael.

"Thank you Hyde, for tonight." She gripped the Coke bottle with both hands. She looked down at Hyde who had sat down in his chair. She wanted him to know how serious she was about that. "It was very special."

Then, forgetting about the two idiots in the background, she leaned down and gave Hyde an earnest kiss on the cheek. The truth was, she felt guilty about kissing him before, but not because of Michael. She felt guilty because Hyde deserved better then to be kissed out of vengeance, and so this time she kissed him amicably, as a friend who really appreciated him.

Jackie wasn't sure she'd find someone else great like Hyde had said she would. But she knew that tonight she had found a great friend in Hyde. And she knew that even if things didn't ever work out with Michael, she'd have a friend in Hyde forever.


	6. Emulation

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Cat Fight Club" (2.25).

* * *

Jackie held out her hand to Hyde, waggling her long fingers encouragingly when he didn't react right away. Hyde was frozen, unsure of why he cared so much. He wasn't sure how or when, but somehow Jackie had managed to finagle her way into their basement life and had separated herself as Kelso's girlfriend. But here she was, sitting in the middle of the battered yellow couch _instead_ of Kelso, impatiently waiting for her turn. Because somehow, for Hyde, Jackie had become her own person.

She pulled her hand away, and Hyde felt a moment of relief. But she only tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before reaching her hand back out to him.

"Hyde." Her voice was curt.

She had been right though. Jackie had made the conscious decision to take part in this and Hyde had no right to stop her, despite whatever compunctions he may have reserved for being the one to allow her to do this.

His mind was starting to turn foggy, but his last coherent thought was that if anyone was to introduce Jackie to this, it should be him. It had to be him.

So he passed Jackie the joint.

It started when Hyde and Forman had ditched Kelso at the dinner table with Red, grabbing Fez along the way, and making their way back to the basement. Jackie was curled up at one end of the couch, magazine in hand.

Why was she still here? Shouldn't she go home for dinner? Feeling concern and being curious about Jackie and her wellbeing had become an inveterate constant in Hyde's life, despite the tireless efforts he'd made to make it otherwise. He couldn't help but wonder if it was that damn soulmate voodoo because he had never given such thought for anyone before, much less those people who annoyed him.

Regardless, he shoved all that aside. "Scram, Jackie," he said as he made his way to the corner where he hid his stash.

Jackie was watching him curiously. When she saw the paper bag she got a mischievous look in her eyes. "No," she said.

Hyde shook his head. "No way." He knew exactly what she was getting at.

"Oh, come on," she whined, dropping her magazine on the table and sitting up straight. "And anyways, isn't smoking weed part of being Zen?"

"Not for you it isn't," Hyde countered. "And anyways, if you're doing this to impress Kelso, then that's no reason to do it."

Jackie crossed her arms and grinned devilishly. "Maybe it's not Michael I'm trying to impress."

Hyde ignored her, which caused Jackie to grow angry.

"No. Nope." She shook her head. "You don't get to decide what I can and cannot do. I want to do this for myself, and that is good enough reason as any."

"Fine," Hyde stipulated. "If you insist."

But still, when it came time to pass it to Jackie, he had difficulty. But he knew that Jackie had the right to decide things for herself, and if this was what she wanted, he had no business telling her otherwise.

After falling into a mellow haze, however, his reservations fell straight away. Jackie had taken to an Oreo, and he was eager to demonstrate what he'd taught her to Forman and Fez.

"She's Zen, man," Hyde found himself say at one point. He looked at Forman and Fez. "I've taken her under my wing. I'm running a Dojo of Coolness. Jackie, demonstrate."

"Oogly, moogly. Googly."

"Yeah, it's her first day," Hyde explained. Then he shot her a disappointed look.

Jackie took a deep breath. "Hyde says last names are Zen, and first names are not." She clapped her split Oreo together several times like cymbals. "Soooo." She dragged out the word. "I will be calling you all 'Hyde', 'Forman', and… um, 'Fez, the boy with no last name' from now on," she declared.

Forman started giggling like a little girl. Hyde imagined he had pigtails. "Hyde man," Forman said between gasps. "You're not teaching her to be Zen, you're teaching her to be _you_."

"Can't I be 'Fez, the _man_ with no last name'?" Fez inquired.

Hyde held the joint, waiting for Jackie's response before passing it again to her.

She was jaded, Hyde could tell. The Oreo she had been dissecting had been long forgotten on the table and her fingers were toying absentmindedly with her bottom lip. Her eyes were staring off a nothing.

When all was said and done, when Forman and Fez had disappeared and Jackie was herself again, only then did Hyde feel the heavy weight he hadn't realized was crushing him lift off his shoulders.

He watched Jackie inquisitively. He knew it was the soulmate thing, but he also knew that it wasn't. He really never believed in any of this fantasy happily ever after stuff, and yet he was still drawn to Jackie, on his own accord with no coaxing from the proverbial 'fate'.

"Why don't you sleep over at Donna's tonight?" Hyde said. He suspected that Jackie was less than enthused by the idea of going home. He wasn't sure why, but he remembered that she hadn't gone home for dinner either. "We'll pick up our Zen lessons tomorrow."

"Okay." Jackie shrugged. It was another moment before she rose from the couch. She headed for the door, grabbing her coat along the way. "Good night, Steven."

Hyde remembered her comment about last names. "That's not very Zen," he scolded gently.

Jackie gave him a small smile and opened the door. "I know," she said before closing the door behind her.


	7. Says Who?

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Reefer Madness" (3.1).

* * *

"We're trying to raise money for a field trip to Amsterdam," Leo was explaining.

Jackie was confused. Why did Leo want to go to Amsterdam, and why did he want to take Steven with him? Jackie squeezed Steven's hand tighter which caused him to pull away again.

"Thanks, Leo man, but no thanks. I've got to go figure something out with the Forman's so…" he let the sentence drop off, as though he were unsure of how it was supposed to finish.

He pulled his hand entirely away from Jackie's, leaving her hand cold, and headed across the Hub to the door. Quickly, Jackie jumped up and ran over to him. "Steven, wait."

She prepared herself for the blow. He knew he was getting annoyed with her, but she just wanted to understand. "Leave me alone, Jackie," he said, his voice riddled with exhaustion. Jackie felt a pang of guilt; she knew that exhaustion was because of her.

"Please, Steven," she said softly. "I just…I just want to understand why you did it."

Steven grabbed the handle to the door and swung it open. He turned back to look at Jackie on his way out. "I don't know," he said, his voice frustrated. His gaze was hard as he slammed the door closed behind him.

Jackie watched through the filthy window, just able to make out Steven's hunched figure in the dark. Steven simply couldn't _not_ know why he'd taken the fall for Jackie; _he_ had done it. Jackie was the one who was confused. What Steven had done…that was something only her soulmate should have done for her. But yet she knew in her heart that that was something Michael was incapable of. And it made Jackie unbearably sad, not that Michael was incapable, but that he was her soulmate and not Steven. It was never supposed to happen this way.

Jackie shuffled back to the table and sat across from Leo who was busy picking at the split ends of his hair. Jackie had an idea. She leaned forward. "Leo, do you know why Steven took the blame for me?"

He glanced up as though he just realized she was there. "Like you said, he loves you."

Jackie shook her head. "No. I only said that. Steven already knows who his soulmate is."

"So?"

"So…" Jackie was unsure of what Leo was implying. "So, he can't love me. I'm not his soulmate, duh."

"Hyde doesn't believe in soulmates though. Neither do I."

Jackie was shocked. Not believing in soulmates was sacrilege. Soulmates were just a universal given, made proof by the clocks borne through everyone's wrists. She knew it would do no good to explain this to the hippie though, so she took another approach. "Why?"

Leo seemed to think about this. Jackie had never seen him think so hard in his life. "Because man," Leo shrugged, "what's the fun in that?"


	8. Almost is Never Enough

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Jackie Bags Hyde" (3.8).

* * *

Hyde chanced a glance in Jackie's direction. And of course, she was smiling at him. Hyde quickly turned his head away, repressing an eye roll and feeling a wave of annoyance wash over him. He didn't know why Jackie was annoying him all of a sudden, after all, he was the one who asked her on the date, technically.

 _Pow_!

Yeah, that and Mrs. Forman's accusatory finger-gun. _That_ was what was annoying him. Or more accurately, his begrudging acceptance of the growing feelings he had for Jackie.

"This is the best date ever." Jackie's words broke his train of thought and he was forced to address her.

"Jackie, we haven't talked in thirty minutes," he said flatly, giving her just as flat a stare.

The moon was full tonight, and in its bright reflection he could easily make out Jackie's ravished expression as she took in every single thing he said.

"That's okay," she said, her voice unfaltering. "Steven, you don't have to say anything. I understand you." There was a hint of pride in her voice.

"Oh, you do, do you?" He had every intention of squashing that pride. He had no idea what had gotten into him tonight.

"Sure." A pause. "Okay, so you're probably sitting there thinking, 'I'm on this date with this girl who really _really_ likes me,'" Jackie laughed nervously. "'And she's so beautiful that – '"

"Jackie." Man, was he ready to put an end to this.

But just as quickly Jackie pressed her fingers to his lips, effectively silencing him.

"Hush," she said before pulling her hand away. "And you're wondering, 'How can I open up to her when everyone I have ever loved have abandoned me? Am I even worthy of love?'" Jackie paused for dramatic effect. "Well, you are, Steven. You are."

Hyde clenched his jaw. It couldn't be enough that Jackie loved being melodramatic and histrionic. But she had actually struck a nerve, not that he'd ever admit it. So he did something he knew was mean and would probably regret in a matter of seconds. He shoved his hands under his glasses and fake sobbed, fooling Jackie into consoling him, and the very second she scooted closer to him and wrapped her arm around his shoulder, he removed his hands and blew a raspberry in her face.

Jackie immediately recoiled, first wiping spit off her chin then throwing her arms into the air exasperated and sliding off the car.

"Let's go home." Her voice was ice.

Yep, he regretted it. More than he thought he would, though.

"Oh, come on. I'm kidding." He tried to recover. "No, this is, this is all right." He stumbled for words. Hyde never stumbled for words. Crap. "We can hang out here for a while, okay?" Jackie cautiously made her way back over to him. "God," he mumbled under his breath as he reached for his paper cup. "Here, have some of my pop."

Jackie eyed the drink for a few seconds before taking it from him. "Sure," she said, a hint of surprise in her voice.

The truth was, Hyde was actually having a good time with Jackie. The air was refreshingly cool from the previous night's rain but tonight the sky was clear, with the bold moon, and more stars were visible in the sky than he had ever remembered seeing.

And even as Jackie edged herself right up next to him, taking the liberty of grabbing his arm and draping it around his shoulder, he found that he was quite comfortable, in all senses of the word. Comfortable in Jackie's presence; none of the awkwardness or uncertainty of the socially constructed 'date' they were on, as he had been expecting. But he was also physically comfortable, with Jackie tucked into his side with his arm pulling her even closer, as though she belonged there all along.

Which, he supposed, was the soulmate part of all of this. And an idea was occurring to him, it had been all night, that he would tell Jackie The Truth, the big, capital T Truth that had the potential of changing the entire direction of their evening. That was the other reason he didn't want them to leave yet; he hadn't quite worked up all the courage he needed to tell her yet.

Jackie handed him back his pop and he took a sip, stalling for time as he tried to figure out what to do. The straw tasted like sugary sweet cotton candy. Jackie's lip gloss, he supposed. He wondered if that's what her lips –

Whoa. He was _not_ quite there yet.

Yet.

"Steven, why did you ask me on this date?" Jackie turned to look up at him without pulling her body out from his side.

He adjusted his arm around her shoulder. _Well, Jackie's because there is something really important I need to tell you._

Hyde shrugged. The Truth wasn't quite reaching his throat yet, but he was put off by feeding her another lie.

"Well." She paused, contemplating this. She rubbed her arms up and down. "I'm glad you did."

Hyde suspected that this was first truly honest thing Jackie had said all night.

She was still rubbing her arms. Silently, Hyde withdrew from her, shrugging out of his coat and draping it over her shoulders. Jackie pulled it tightly around her and Hyde thought he detected a flare of color in her cheeks.

Suddenly Jackie bounded off the car, taking a few steps away before spinning around to face him. "What a beautiful night this is, Steven Hyde!" Her eyes were alight in the darkness and there was a genuine and uncontrolled smile adorned oh her face. He felt himself smile in return.

"What is this place?" She started walking around, taking everything in.

Hyde cleared his throat. "Uh, this is a clearing in the woods behind my house." Hyde hopped off the hood. He walked over to the edge of the clearing. "See, right down there is the water tower, and over there to the right is Point Place High."

Jackie looked over to where he was pointing. "Wow, you can see the whole tiny town from up here." She tilted her head to one side, her hair cascading over her shoulder. "Kinda puts things in perspective, you know?" Her voice was quiet, contemplative.

Hyde had no idea where this side of Jackie had come from. The side that knew that fashion magazines and pom poms were trivial, materialistic things and who looked at life in a more raw, deeply abstract way. And as he watched her eyes wander across Point Place from their superior vantage point, he begun to realize that this Jackie might be more real and more Zen than he could ever hope to be. And damn it, he was falling hard for this chick.

Abruptly, Jackie tore away from him and jogged back over to the Lincoln, sitting on the side of the front hood this time. "So is this like, your secret hide out or something?" Jackie waggled her eyebrows excitedly.

"Or something," Hyde mumbled.

Jackie was silent, watching his every move as he slowly made his way back to sit next to her. "And you showed it to me," she said, not as a question.

"Just you," Hyde admitted.

Jackie was understandably surprised, not only by the fact that she was the only one Hyde had ever shown this place to, but likely because Hyde had voluntarily shared that extra detail. Especially since it was not in Hyde's nature to give away these little details.

He watched her closely and unabashedly now. She craned her neck up toward the sky and held it there for a while. "So," she said eventually, nervously eyeing him. "Our first date's almost over."

"Yeah."

"What'd you think?" She smiled but he could sense the apprehension in her voice.

Hyde contemplated his answer. It wasn't that he didn't know what to think, but the issue was how much of what he thought was he willing to tell her?

"It was no worse than bowling." He went with that less serious and noncommittal answer for a reason. Jackie narrowed her eyes but Hyde had the sense that she knew he was kidding. The next words out of his mouth were a surprise to even him though. "I don't hate bowling."

That was it. He'd just admitted out loud that he liked her. Or at least liked his date with her. And he could tell that Jackie could read that subtext too, because her expression grew tentative, but still, she leaned in first.

He responded in kind, closing the gap between them. He kissed her softly at first, but then she forced it deeper, and he went with it more than willingly. He reached his hand around the small of her back, pulling her closer, needing her to be closer, and she obviously felt the same, bringing her hand to his cheek and subtly pulling him in closer.

He realized that even though he had kissed many girls before Jackie, it was as though he'd never kissed, or been kissed, before. Because this was different. This was breathing her in the way someone needed to breathe in air, while at the same time being dizzily intoxicated as everything but Jackie and her lips against his faded from his mind.

But then Jackie pulled away abruptly, leaving Hyde feeling cold and his lips oddly naked.

"Huh." Her voice cracked and Hyde noticed her hands just barely trembling. There was a pregnant pause, and it felt like Hyde had waited a lifetime before she said her next words. "Okay, I didn't feel anything."

Her words were void of any of the emotion and deepness that she had been speaking with before, and Hyde was struck, wondering what exactly caused this shift in her attitude.

"Nothing?" he asked.

"No, I mean the kiss was hot but…" Again her words seemed empty, somehow. "Well, did you feel something?"

"Uh…no." There was no way he'd admit to feeling something if Jackie was going to be like this. "Well…"

 _Well, Jackie, here's the thing. We're actually each other' s soulmates and believe it or not, I actually did feel something. A lot of something, to be honest. And I would swear that you did too._

The words simply could not make it out of his mouth.

 _Jackie, we're soulmates_ , Hyde's mind desperately plead.

"No."

He touched his lips softly. He could still feel the impression of her lips against his. But still, the feeling was fading fast, like a dream when first woken.

He wondered if he'd ever live that dream again.


	9. Entropy

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Everybody Loves Casey" (4.26).

* * *

Jackie knew her relationship with Michael was moving downhill. And yet, no matter how hard she tried to keep the two of them happy and together, she couldn't get a firm enough grasp on the situation to make any difference. The futility was exhausting, but Jackie knew that if things between them didn't change soon, their relationship would be destroyed for good. And without her soulmate, Jackie would be miserable for the rest of her life.

Her situation reminded her of what she had learned in chemistry last week. In going over the laws of thermodynamics, Jackie had learned that everything in the universe naturally moves towards entropy, or disorder, and no system can overcome it. Jackie was immediately disheartened, and had excused herself to the bathroom, because suddenly she had felt like her relationship with Michael was the system doomed to entropy, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Thankfully, that afternoon Jackie had found comfort in _Cosmo_ when one of the articles was titled "You're Soulmates, Of Course There's a Fix!" Jackie rapidly forgot all about the laws of science. What did science know about soulmates, anyways?

The article spoke about all the different problems some soulmates encountered on their journey together. As for the section on cheating, which Jackie's eyes immediately fell to, it read that "soulmates cheat not to end the entire relationship, and often when soulmates cheat, it's because there is a more profound problem with the relationship. If you and/or your partner have cheated on one another, try and identify this hidden problem. You might just find that it will not just resolve the cheating, but salvage your entire relationship! After all, you _are_ meant to be!"

Jackie was inspired. And after further delving through the article, Jackie realized that although she didn't define her kissing Todd to be cheating in the same way Michael cheated on her, she _had_ let Todd kiss her. Probably because she still felt insecure in her relationship with Michael, who was supposed her be her soulmate but still didn't love her enough to be faithful to her.

So she ripped out all the pages that Michael would likely drool over, then handed it to him at the Forman's barbeque that weekend. If there was a deeper issue other than cheating, then Jackie knew that time was running out for them to fix it. Already the two of them were broken up more than they were together.

But mostly because Jackie was unhappy. And tired of being that way.

"Michael, are you ready to talk?" she asked him in the hall one day during school the following week.

She had snuck up behind him while he was busy laughing with Eric and Hyde. Hyde's eyes had drifted to her for a moment, but he said nothing to Michael as Jackie approached him, so that when she did, she caught him off guard.

Michael spun around rapidly to face her. "Oh, hi Jackie." The laughter had faded from his voice entirely.

"Do you want to come over to my house and… _talk_ after school?" Jackie pressed.

Something had changed in him, Jackie realized. Suddenly it felt like she wasn't looking into the eyes of her soulmate, her equal. The way he was looking down at her now, tense jaw and stormy eyes, well, it left chills running down Jackie's spine.

"Sure," Michael said. Then he turned his back to her once more and resumed his conversation with Eric and Hyde.

A lump caught in Jackie's throat and she made a dash for the bathroom before the choked sob could escape her throat out in the middle of the hallway, so she didn't see the way Hyde's eyes followed her down the hall until she had completely disappeared from view.

Jackie was sitting at her desk later that afternoon, just about to start painting her nails 'Poppin' Princess Pink' when Michael burst through her bedroom door and swung it shut behind him.

He stood right where he was and held up the _Cosmo_ that she had given him. _Huh_ , she was surprised he even pretended to read it.

"Guess what?" Michael waved the magazine in the space between them. He wasn't quite yelling, but his voice was loud, assertive. "I read your little 'Everything's My Fault' article, and I realized why I cheated. Remember the first time I kissed Pam Macy?"

Jackie was taken aback. Where was he going with this? She put down her hair brush. "Behind the gym," she sneered.

"And in the gym and in her car...but anyway." His eyes darted across the room and he marched further in. Jackie swiveled in her chair to follow him. "Earlier that day, I didn't have any money to buy you Tater Tots. And you said that I'd never be able to support you, 'cause I wasn't smart enough." Michael sat on her bed. "And you're always putting me down like that, and it makes me feel bad about myself. And that's why I cheated."

Jackie was livid. "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard!"

Jackie knew Michael was right, to an extent. She was hard on him a lot, but it was only because he was her soulmate and she wanted him to be the best person he could be. And never mind the fact that his infidelity started long before her days of putting him on a tight leash. She had wanted to be a docile, happy girlfriend, but at some point, she'd realized that she had been putting more effort into their relationship than he had.

Jackie was about to say as much when Michael spoke again. "Just like that. And then I thought about it and I realized that I'm not sorry either."

Suddenly the walls in Jackie's room started spinning and she felt as though Michael had just socked her in the face. This was not how it was supposed to work. Why was her plan backfiring? They were supposed to work out their problems and have a happily ever after.

She struggled for words. "Michael, what are you saying?" And as she watched his face she could practically feel the entropy of their soulmate system devouring them whole.

"I'm saying that we're not right for each other, because you make me feel bad." His words were choked. "And…and…I don't think I can be with you anymore. I want to break up."

"Wait, break up?" Jackie was stunned.

Never in all the times she had broken up with Michael was it because she really and truly didn't want to be with him. He was her soulmate, of course she wanted to be with him. But now…now Michael was telling her that he no longer wanted to be with her, and Jackie didn't know what else she could do. How had this gotten worse? How could it get _any_ worse?

"No, no. Michael I was wrong," Jackie pled. She would say anything now to at least get him to stay. "Please, let's talk about this."

"No," he seethed. He tossed her magazine on the side of her bed and made his way back to her door.

"Wait, but Michael." Jackie stood. She needed to stop him, but before she could find a way he was long gone.

She ran to the slammed door and pulled it back open. No sign of Michael. "But we're soulmates," she shouted down the empty hallway, her eyes welling with tears. "We were supposed to be soulmates."

Jackie flung herself back in her room. Angry at the world, she kicked one of her favorite flower pillows across the room. It flew into her side table, knocking off her alarm clock in the process. Jackie leaned against her door and slid down to the floor. Once there, she didn't feel small enough and ended up curled up in a ball, the tears sliding across her face and landing in droplets on the carpet that her cheek was pressed against.

From this perspective on the floor, she could read the time on her clock. She watched the next hour and a half pass, unable to will herself to move from her position on the floor and unable to stop the guttural sobs that were so deep her whole body convulsed.

She simply could not wrap her head around it. Jackie would have thought that true love and soulmates would overcome everything, even the laws of science. But yet once again, her relationship with Michael was in ruins, and by the laws of thermodynamics, there was no coming back from disorder, because that was just the thing about entropy.

It always wins.


	10. Crashing Down

**Author's Note:** Inspired by the episode "Love, Wisconsin Style" (4.27).

* * *

Hyde was certainly glad that Fez was so willing to put dead fish in Kelso's van without question. He wasn't about to explain to Fez his real motivation behind making Kelso miserable.

"Look man, there it is." Hyde pointed out Kelso's van. It was in the corner of the lot behind The Hub. Hyde and Fez had quietly followed Jackie and Kelso out here from the Forman's house in the hopes of hiding the fish while the two of them went back to do their stupid make-up ritual in The Hub.

"Perfect," Fez said as the two of them knelt down beside the tire with the lose hubcap.

Hyde finished prying off the cap and let Fez do all the fish handling. "Right in here." He held out the hubcap to Fez.

Just as Fez was about to drop the first fish in, they heard the door to The Hub slam closed, followed by the sound of someone running in their direction. Hyde gestured for Fez to hide the fish just as Jackie came rearing around their side of the van, clapping and jumping excitedly.

"Michael and I are getting married!"

Hyde felt his heart drop from his chest into his gut and it took him a moment to recover before he could even speak. "Yeah we heard," he tried with false enthusiasm. "That's why we're decorating the van."

Jackie's smile slowly faded as she took in the sight of the two of them hovering over Kelso's tire, Fez with a fish carcass hanging between his fingers.

"But…but not with fish," Fez lied.

Hyde brought a fist to Fez's arm to let him know how stupid he was for even mentioning the fish. Fez let out a yelp of pain, shooting Hyde a look of disdain, but thankfully Jackie had lost interest in them and was turning away. Hyde pointed to the hubcap and Fez began filling it once again.

But after a moment, Hyde lifted his head back in Jackie's direction. Her reflective red bomber jacket shone under the pallid street lamp, and she was skipping further and further away, her arms swaying back and forth.

"Here man, you finish." Hyde passed Fez the hubcap. "I'm going to go make sure Kelso is still in The Hub."

Without waiting for Fez's response, Hyde was on his feet towards the door of The Hub, which he shoved open with more force than he realized he probably should have. Kelso was sitting at a table by himself, chewing the top of his plastic drink straw.

"Kelso," he said monotonously.

He immediately looked up, and Hyde couldn't help but think of Pavlov's dog. Kelso rushed over to him.

"Hyde, man. I need your help. Jackie wants to get married," he whispered anxiously.

Hyde looked up at Kelso who was now wide-eyed and pale with fear as he brought the straw back between his lips.

"I know. Jackie just told me."

"No, Hyde I don't think you get it," Kelso said impatiently. He looked as though he was contemplating something in his head. He sighed. "Look, I'm going to tell you something but…but you better not tell _anybody_."

Hyde said nothing. He wasn't about to make Kelso any promises.

Taking Hyde's silence as confirmation, Kelso lowered his voice. "I can't marry Jackie. Because she's not, well…Jackie's not my soulmate." He paused. "My clock is still…ticking."

Hyde silently mulled this over. All these years he thought that maybe Kelso was just dumb enough to think that Jackie was his soulmate because she had 'said so'. But now he had just confirmed that all these years he had been stringing an unknowing Jackie along, until it got to the point where she thought the two of them were actually going to get married.

Hyde was rightfully livid.

"One day she came up to me and said we were soulmates, and I thought she was really hot so I just went along with it." Kelso's voice rose an octave. "And all of a sudden, things just got out of control. Hyde, I don't know what do to do."

Hyde took a step back from Kelso. He had to get out of there soon or he was going to beat Kelso to a pulp. "There's only one thing to do, man." He swung open the door.

"What's that?" Kelso leaned forward, eagerly waiting for Hyde's advice, but Hyde knew it wasn't going to be what he wanted to hear.

"Tell her the truth."


	11. Rapidly Beating Heart

**Author's Note:** From here on out, these chapters occur during the summer between season 4 and 5.

* * *

Jackie wasn't sure how it had started. 'It', of course, being her falling in love with Steven Hyde.

She supposed, if she really thought about it, it was the couch in the Forman's basement that had been the catalyst. The summer had started with Jackie and Hyde sitting on opposite ends of that couch. Today, she sat on the same couch, only this time she was tucked into Hyde's side with his left arm wrapped around her shoulders, his fingers interweaved with her own.

It had been a slow progression. Opposite ends of the couch lead to either Jackie or Hyde moving to the middle, right between the two cushions. Day trips to The Hub or running errands for Mrs. Forman at the Piggly-Wiggly had helped further dissolve the barrier between them. Next Jackie was sitting cross-legged on the couch with her knee spilling over into Steven's lap. One day Steven's hand landed on top of her knee and it never left. Then, before Jackie knew it, her fingers were interlocked with Steven's, their intertwined hands swaying back and forth between them as they strolled through the Annual Auto Show of Kenosha with Red, who didn't bother giving the two teenagers' sudden intimacy a second thought. And today, well today Jackie knew that she would kiss Steven Hyde.

Jackie wasn't sure what exactly was blaring on the television in front of them. All she knew was that she had a burning question for Steven and couldn't wait until the commercials hit so she could ask it. When they did she tugged on his hand that was clasped with her own.

"Hey, Steven. Do you remember your secret hide out?" She turned slightly to face him.

Steven narrowed his eyes. "Yeah," he said, warily.

"Hmm," Jackie pondered. She hadn't thought about what she'd say next. She had just been thinking about their date all those years ago and had wanted to know if he remembered it too.

"Do you – do you remember what you said that…night?" she pushed.

Steven's wariness deepened, and rightfully so, Jackie thought. She was going somewhere with this now.

"Jackie, what are you getting at?" He read her thoughts.

She expelled a heavy sigh, unsure how to go about what she wanted to know. Jackie knew Steven wasn't her soulmate, and that just by sitting here with him she would be eternally damned for being with someone that she knew wasn't her soulmate. But as each day passed, filled in a haze of heat and uncertainty, she felt that she no longer cared as much.

"Did you really mean it when you said…that you felt _nothing_ when we kissed?" Her voice was hoarse.

Ever since that night, Jackie's mind had refused to give up on that one little word he'd said: "Well." And not just the word, but the ambiguity that it carried with it. At some point along the way Jackie had realized that he might've been lying that night. Before this summer, she had desperately hoped that she had been wrong about it, but now she was secretly hoping for him to confirm her suspicions.

Steven's eyes fell away from hers and Jackie could see his taut jaw when he turned his face away from hers. When he said nothing after a long moment Jackie used her free hand – he had yet to remove his hand from hers – to reach forward and cup his jaw to turn his face back towards her.

"Steven," she whispered pleadingly. Her eyes darted back and forth, meeting both of his own. Then she slid her hand from his jaw to the nape of his neck and pulled him closer, bringing her lips softly to his own.

His response was immediate. The arm that had been wrapped around Jackie's shoulders tightened, bringing her body closer to his while his free hand wrapped around the small of her back. This time, Jackie let all her inhibitions slip away as she just let herself kiss Steven, who she knew this time was really kissing her back. And just like last time, the passion and intensity of their hungry mouths and tangled bodies was immensely hot. And also just like last time, she did feel something – although she had told Steven it was nothing – the only difference being that this time she could identify these feelings as wholesome and pure…and unbearably heartbreaking.

"Wait," she pushed herself away suddenly. Steven watched her closely, but she couldn't tell what he was thinking.

But then, she didn't know what she was thinking either. Steven wasn't her soulmate. Yes, she wanted to be with him more than she'd ever wanted to be with Michael, and she knew what she felt for Steven was love, if that were even possible. But she also knew that she loved him enough to not do this to him; to not subject him to a life of misery for choosing her over his true soulmate.

Suddenly, Jackie felt herself rise from the couch. "I – I need to go," she said. She stumbled for the door, tripping in her rush to call Donna.

Jackie didn't want to wait until she got home to call Donna, but she also didn't want to use the phone in the Forman's kitchen and risk running into Steven again. So she compromised by running across the yard to the Pinciotti's where she'd ask Bob if she could use his phone.

"Hello?" Donna's voice filled Jackie's ears not five minutes later.

"Donna, it's me," Jackie paused and caught her breath. She didn't know why she felt so breathless all of a sudden. "I think I'm in love with Steven Hyde."

There was a period of silence with just the buzzing of the connection between them. "So?" came Donna's response.

"Donna, you don't get it," Jackie said impatiently. "Steven's not my soulmate. Michael is."

"How do you know that?" Donna asked, her voice suddenly forceful.

"What do you mean?"

"How do you know that Hyde's not your soulmate and Kelso is?"

Jackie rolled her eyes. "Duh, because my soulmate clock went off when I met Michael."

"I know, Jackie. I was there that day. In the gym. Remember?" Donna asked.

Jackie thought about that for a moment. Her memory of that day was foggy; she'd really only remembered laying eyes on Michael, but now that she thought about it she remembered Donna too. "That's right, you threw that dodgeball at me!" Jackie recalled.

"Hyde was there too." Donna said.

"Wait, no he wasn't." Jackie scoffed. "No, the first time I met Steven was, um…"

Then it hit her.

 _Welcome to public school!_

"Oh my God."

"Listen, Jackie," Donna said. "I would've said something sooner, but Kelso only just told me the other day that you weren't his soulmate and so I realized – "

"No, Donna. Thank you. Thank you so much. I've gotta go."

"Wait, where are you going?"

Jackie smiled into the phone and brought her hand to her rapidly beating heart. "I'm going to go be with my soulmate."


	12. Lost Time

**Author's Note:** This is the last chapter! Thank you so so much to everyone who read through and stuck with this story, you have no idea how much it means to me. It was such an amazing experience participating in Zenmasters Anthology 2017 and I hope you all enjoy this last chapter!

* * *

As the child of two people who were not soulmates, Hyde had never truly known happiness. And as someone who didn't fully believe in soulmates or the soulmate clock, there were only three things about it that he was convinced of. One, he was certain that because his existence was outside the realm of soulmates, whatever powers may or may not exist wanted to make him suffer.

Another thing he was sure of was his feelings for Jackie Burkhart. All this soulmate 'stuff' aside, every cell in his body ached for her and he cared more about her than any other living soul on this planet. And lastly, he was starting to think that with Jackie he might actually be happy.

But all that shattered into a thousand tiny fragments as Jackie tore out of the basement, slamming the door shut behind her.

Hyde couldn't move. He heard her feet fly up the cement stairs and then all was silent. The television still blared in front of him, but Hyde was suddenly filled with such strong emotion – that which he could not identify – that all sound was washed away to nothing.

Suddenly Hyde was on his feet, pacing the length of the basement. He contemplated following Jackie but had no idea where she had run to or what he would say if he found her. Why couldn't he just tell her the truth? He knew now that he wasn't going to be able to shove this all aside any longer, but the words always got caught in the back of his throat.

He needed to kick something. As he passed the lawn chair, his foot sent it flying into the record player by the door, spilling a ton of 45s across the ground. Then, with a bit more self-control, he removed his sunglasses and hung them on the collar of his shirt before rubbing vigorously at his eyes, a behavior he often found himself doing when he was frustrated, as though a subconscious part of him believed doing this could make it all go away.

He was pacing back in the direction of his chair and the deep freeze when he heard the door squeak open behind him. He pivoted around on his heel to find Jackie standing in the doorway, stiff as a rail. Her hand was clutching the door knob with such force it was as though it was all that was keeping her standing. The area around her eyes was puffy and red and her eyes shone with unshed tears.

"Are we soulmates?" she demanded.

Hyde swallowed the lump in his throat. "If you believe in that fantasy crap, then yeah."

"God, Steven." Her hand withdrew from the door knob and she walked across the fallen records before stopping just shy of the couch. "It's not crap to me!"

"Jackie, did you even hear me?" Hyde almost laughed.

"What?"

"I said yes."

There was a beat as she processed this. "Then why did you never say anything?" she exclaimed frustrated, walking right up to him and getting in his face.

Hyde shrugged.

"No," Jackie said, her voice low. "You owe me an explanation."

The words were caught in Hyde's throat again, unable to come out. But Jackie was standing so close, so close that their breath mixed with each other's. Her eyes no longer shone with tears but they were pleading with him for answers Hyde knew she deserved.

"If we were going to end up together," Hyde forced the words out of his mouth, "then I didn't want you to be with me because some stupid clock obligated you to be."

Her eyes shifted to the floor as Jackie contemplated this. When she spoke again it was with much less force. "Is that why _you_ want to be with _me_? Because of your soulmate clock?"

Hyde actually laughed out loud this time. If only Jackie knew the truth. The truth about how hard he tried not to like her, to hate her even, but how he always came right back to this truth about how he really felt.

"This isn't funny," Jackie said, a note of warning in her voice.

"No, you're right. It's not funny how much I want to be with you, Jackie. And I want to be with you because _I want to be with you_."

Hyde could not believe he had just said all that out loud. Jackie simply stared at him, her mouth hanging open slightly as though she were surprised by his admission too. She shifted her weight, tossing her hand through the air dismissively. She looked at him for a long, hard moment, a moment in which Hyde desperately wished he could tell what Jackie was thinking.

"So, where do we go from here?" Jackie eventually asked.

Hyde could feel a sheepish grin forming on his lips. "I wouldn't be opposed to trying this again." He stepped forward, closing the distance between them and bringing his mouth to Jackie's before she could say anything else. She wrapped both her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him.

And then she pulled away.

"Wait, Steven." Jackie planted her palms firmly on his shoulders. "I'm sorry for not...seeing you, that day in the gym."

Hyde couldn't think of a response to that so he wordlessly leaned down to kiss Jackie again. Her fingers splayed across his cheeks and her nails grazed his unshaven face as his thumbs rubbed at her temples. He had no response because there _was_ no response. So instead he kissed her deeply; after all, they had a lot of lost time to make up for.


End file.
